Currently, there are an estimated 500,000 breast augmentations performed annually in the continental United States. These augmentations frequently utilize a mammary prosthesis consisting of Silastic.RTM. bag filled with a liquid silicon. A new polyurethane foam prosthesis has, also, been recently introduced and is being used in a limited number of procedures.
The currently practiced method of implanting a mammary prosthesis is to manually push it through a small incision located at the fold at the lowermost base of the breast. The incision is smaller than the prosthesis, so insertion is difficult especially when coupled with fluids from the open incision. This manual insertion procedure is time consuming and frequently leads to capsule formation, an infection resulting from handling the prosthesis during implantation.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,035,850 to Cresswall is directed to a method and apparatus for inserting a mammary prosthesis into a patient. The apparatus comprises an inner opened mouth bag and an outer opened mouth bag which are sealed together, at their opened mouths, by ring member. Fluid fills the space between the two bags. The prosthesis is carried with the inner bag and ejected therefrom when the outer bag is squeezed.